1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a quench car for receiving coke from a coke oven and transporting it to a quench tower. In particular, this invention relates to an improved quench car of the single-spot type.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the past, quench cars were constructed to be shallow and long. It was thought that the thinner the bed of coke in the car, the easier the job of uniformly quenching the coke while in the car. The shallow and long quench cars are the travelling-type and are filled as they move past the coke oven. Although uniform quenching may be accomplished through the use of the travelling-type quench car, significant problems have arisen in attempts to control pollution emissions when pushing the coke from the oven into the car. The movement of the car when receiving coke complicates the utilization of shrouds, hoods, and covers. The application of a hood and an exhaust system to a quench car to control pollution emissions would be facilitated by eliminating the movement of the car past the oven during a push.
The quench car which remains stationary in front of a coke oven while receiving a push of coke is known as a single-spot quench car. Because it is stationary, rigging a hood and exhaust system to cover the car and positioning the car to receive the coke is made easier. However, the single-spot quench cars currently in use are inadequate. The coke ovens in operation today establish well-defined parameters within which a single-spot quench car must be designed; parameters which are well suited to a long, shallow quench car (i.e., the travelling-type). Other confining parameters are the traditional floor slope for effective coke dumping and the angle of declination of the coke as it is received in the car. A single-spot quench car designed within these parameters has a correspondingly small transverse cross-sectional area. This limits the volume of the car to such an extent that an entire push of coke cannot be completely received in the car. One type of single-spot quench car found today uses a non-sloping floor to try to increase the car's volume. Without a sloping floor the car cannot be dumped merely by raising a gate at the front of the car. The entire coke container must be rotated to dump the coke. Nearby equipment, such as the coke guide, severely limits the available space for rotating the container.